Method for tabulating election returns

ABSTRACT

A novel election ballot counting method and system utilizing data processing equipment and capable of providing an itemized total of the votes cast for each vote choice in an election accommodating ballot format variation including candidate rotation.

United States Patent Cook [ 1 Mar. 7, 1972 METHOD FOR TABULATING ELECTION RETURNS Arnold G. Cook, River Forest, 111.

Automatic Voting Machine Corporation, Jamestown, NY.

Oct. 20, 1969 Inventor:

Assignee:

Filed:

Appl. No.:

, named as. Application om Continuation of Ser. No. 509,911, Nov. 26, 1965, abandoned.

US. Cl. "235/613 R, 101/93 C, 235/56,

PRE-ELECTION References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1/1966 Clark 235/54 F 11/1965 Holzer et al. ..235/61.7 12/1965 Railsback et al. ..235/55 x 7/1960 Martin ...235l6l.603 x 5/1962 Beman ..235/61.9 8/1962 Lindquist..... ...235/61.603 x 10/1965 Atkinson ..235/61.603 X Primary Examiner-Maynard R. Wilbur Assistant Examiner-Robert M. Kilgore Attorney-Strauch, Nolan, Neale, Nies & Kurz ABSTRACT 12 Claims, 62 Drawing Figures ELECTION NIGHT Ballot Precinct Information Summary Assignment Keypunch of Candidate Input "Count" Codes Cards 2"' q 1 Data 1 set up Bane; "Code" 8|"Gount" 20 tor Keypunch gfi' l t {26 2| 'yp "c Input Error Header and ucodeu Cards Cards Editor Tape 226 /24 Set Up Hwde 2::2' Processor Tapes 9 Dummy Run 0 t t For Code and Head Editor Verification Print Return Patented March 7, 1972 PRE-ELECTION Ballot Information Assignment of Candidate Codes Set Up Ballots for Keypunch Keypunch Header and "Code" Cards Set Up Header To pes "Code" Cards Header .5 5 Sheets-Sheet. 1

Dummy Run For Code and Header Verification Tapes ELECTION NIGHT Precinct Summary Keypunch Input "Coimt' 1 Cards Corrected "Code" 8:"Count" r20 Card Collator Input Editor Error Tape Processor Output Editor Print Return INVENT OR ARNOLD 6. COOK Patented March 7, 1972 3,648,022

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Patented March 7, 1972 55 Sheets-Sheet 11 IOI IBI

\PRECINCT NO WRITE IN NO.

55 Shoots-Shut 15 FEE-ELECTION BALLOT INFORMATION Assignment of Candidate Codes Set up Ballots for Keypunchinp; 8c verifying;

Unofficial Official Returns Data Input Returns Header Header Cards "Code" curds Cards Set up Set up I Header Header- Log TI 1 Official Header Tape Header Tape Patented March 1, 1972 3,648,022

' 55 Shuts-Shoot 14 ELECTION NIGHT PRINTED RETURNS Keypunch and verify data input "count"cds Manual or Ma.- chine "MATCH- MERGE" System Data Input Code and Count Cards I List cards AVM Input I program I Editor 20MB? l (optional) Program I Log 'IPl I Data card Error List I Listing Program Process Error Program Listing I Repunch and verify cor-- rec-I; input Patented March 7, 1972 55 Shuts-Shut 1s ELECTION NIGHT Sununarize Program Edited Unofficial Returns Program Ed ite Unoi'lic Returns Tape Log, TP

Print Unofficial Returns Program Unofficial Returns POST-ELECTION Endorsed Candi date code cards Endorsed candidate accumulation program Edit Official Returns Program Log TPL Edited Officia Returns Print Official Returns Program 'Offl'iciu].

Returns 

1. A method of processing voting data from a plurality of ballot formats in elections of the type wherein less than all the vote choices in the election appear on any one ballot format comprising the steps of: a. assigning to the vote choices on different ones of said ballot formats an identifying indicia to be common to all vote choices of like significance in the election and capable of being distinguished from the identifying indicia of all vote choices of different significance; b. placing appropriate ones of the vote choices on various different ballot formats presented to the voters at the precint voting locations; c. prior to an election, preparing a first machine acceptable record containing the identifying indicia correlated with the physical location of the vote choice for each of said different ballot formats; d. after an election, preparing a second machine acceptable record containing the vote cast for the vote choice correlated with the physical location of the vote choice on each of said different ballot formats; e. combining said first and second records in a first data processing machine at a central processing station for each of said ballot formats to associate said identifying indicia and the corresponding vote on a further record acceptable for machine data processing; and f. utilizing said further record in a second data processing machine in a processing step to produce totals for each distinct vote choice.
 2. The method as defined in claim 1 comprising the further step of printing total votes processed to date during the processing operation wherein the vote cast for each choice is correlated with the identifying indicia for each choice to produce an unofficial return sheet.
 3. The method as defined in claim 1 comprising the further step of printing the total vote cast after said further record has been completed to produce an official return showing the total vote for each choice together with the identifying indicia for each choice.
 4. The method as defined in claim 1 wherein the first and second records for a plurality of voting locations are combined at a central station.
 5. The method as defined in claim 4 wherein said second record is prepared from a voting machine printed return sheet.
 6. The method as defined in claim 4 wherein said second record is prepared by data procesSing equipment counting individual ballots to produce a precinct summary.
 7. The method as defined in claim 1 wherein the further record produced from the combining of the first and second records contains said identifying indicia and vote cast for each ballot format in a form free of error that results from checking to detect both omission of vote totals from any precinct and duplicate entry of vote totals from any precinct.
 8. The method as defined in claim 7 wherein said further record contains all the information from one precinct in a unitary block of high-density information free of noninformation containing areas for carrying vote total information concerning vote choices absent from the ballot format from that precinct, the information for various precincts is entered in a random sequence, and thereafter said further record is processed in said second data processing machine to produce a summary printed return sheet.
 9. The method as defined in claim 1 wherein said first record is a ''''code'''' card prepared prior to the election, said second record is a ''''count'''' card prepared after the election, and said further record is a magnetic tape having the identifying indicia and the associated vote in error-free form from a ballot format located geographically together in a unitary block of high-density information free of areas for carrying vote total information concerning vote choices absent from that ballot format.
 10. The method as defined in claim 9 further comprising entering said unitary blocks of high-density information on said further record only after checking to determine all needed information for the ballot format involved is present.
 11. The method as defined in claim 1 further comprising the steps of producing at the precinct a physical record containing the votes cast at that precinct; transporting said physical record to a central data processing center; and utilizing said physical record to produce a machine acceptable record which constitutes said second record as specified in step (d) of claim 1 randomly in substantially the order said physical records are received at the central processing center.
 12. The method as defined in claim 11 wherein the first record as specified in step (c) of claim 1 comprises a deck of ''''code'''' cards for each precinct physical record with each card bearing precinct identification data; the second record as specified in step (d) of claim 1 constitutes a deck of ''''count'''' cards with each card bearing precinct identification data: and the further record specified in step (e) of claim 1 contains that vote total from each ''''count'''' card of a precinct and the identifying indicia from the corresponding ''''code'''' card of said precinct in a unitary block of high-density information free of areas for carrying vote total information concerning vote choices absent from the ballot format of that precinct; and the method further comprises entering the blocks of information on said further record only after checking to determine all information for the precinct is present. 